Marmie's Enchiladas

I came home from work today and got the itch to cook. And so I did. I called my marmie because I got the craving to make Enchiladas! And I remember from growing up that whenever she made enchiladas they were delicious! So I channeled my grandmother in her apron and got to work.

Ingredients:
3T oil
2 med. onions, chopped
2 large green peppers, chopped
2 cans enchilada sauce
1 c. sour cream
1 lb monterey jack cheese cut into 12 logs
2 c. shredded cheddar cheese
12 corn torillas
1/2 c. oil (i think you need more - but maybe I am not a master chef!)
-----
I added two tomatoes, chopped
5 cloves of garlic

Cook onion and green pepper in 3T oil until soft but not brown, salt to taste (this is where I added the 5 cloves of garlic).

Combine the enchilada sauce and sour cream, simmer for 1 minute.

Fry tortillas one at a time in oil - don't let them get TOO cripsy (you have to be able to roll them). Drain on paper towel.

 Put enough sauce on bottom of 9x13 pan to just cover it.

Put 1/12 of pepper and 1/12 of jack cheese in tortillas (I added tomato!) and roll. Place seam side down in baking dish.

Pour remaining sauce over. Top with cheddar cheese.

Bake uncovered at 375 degrees for 20-25 minutes.

This freezes well and serves 4-6! Happy Cooking!!

Bon Appetite!

Kidney Bean Soup

I had a couple cans of kidney beans from when I was on the 4 Hour Body kick. I am still sort of on it, but I really do not like beans, so I am trying to find out creative ways to get rid of the beans that have been sitting on my shelf for a year now. So I decided tonight to get rid of my kidney beans.

I found a couple of recipes online but none of them were quite right, so I combine a bunch of the ideas and came up with my own soup.

And not to toot my own horn, but I AM AMAZING. you need to eat this.

Put some olive oil in a big pot (also, when i cook, i typically do not measure things, so all of this is just a guess cause I just started throwing things in a pan)
Add half an onion. Cook until onion is translucent.
Add four cloves of garlic.

 Add one can of broth (I used beef broth because that I what I had at home, but I think chicken or vegetable would work just as well)
Add one can of water
Add two cans of kidney beans
Add one can of diced tomatoes.

Add some chopped broccoli
Add some chopped celery

Add two TBSP of dijon mustard
Add some italian seasoning
Add salt and pepper to taste

Simmer for about 15-20 minutes.
Add some fresh spinach and cook another 5 minutes.

I put some avocado on the top as a garnish and it was delicious!

Lentil Stew with Sausage

Some friends and I are trying a new diet called the Four Body Diet where we can't eat any carbs, fruit or dairy (pretty much anything good!). But we can eat as much beans, meat and vegetables we want.

So my roommate and I have found some creative recipes that we can make that taste good and don't break any rules.

Last night we made a Lentil Stew with Sausage

1 tbsp. olive oil
2 onions chopped
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 carrots, coarsely chopped or sliced
1 lb smoked beer sausage, sliced (we used ground pork sausage)
1 lb. lentils rinsed and drained
4 cups chicken or vegetable broth (we used both)
1 tsp. dried sage (we used italian seasoning)
1 tsp. dried thype (we used italian seasoning)
1/4 tsp. ground black pepper
1 tsp. salt
1 lb. fresh kale or spinach, stems trimmed, leaves chopped (we used spinach and did not chop the leaves cause I did not read that part)

In a 6 to 8-quart pot or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium-high heat. Saute onions, garlic and carrots until soft, abut 10 minutes. Add sausage, lentils, brother, italian seasoning, pepper and salt. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, until lentils are barely tender, about 20 minutes. Stir in spinach. Bring to a boil, cover, and simmer for 10 minutes or until lentils are tender. Ladle into soup bowls.

Makes 8 servings.

It was simple and really delicious. And the leftovers are JUST AS GOOD!!!

July 4th

I have decided to stop numbering my pictures because, well, i won't get up to 365 since i skipped most of june - and it was getting confusing to keep track of (don't ask me why, just trust me).  so i will just label each day by the day that it is (genius!)

today was the birth day of america. several wonderful friends came over to eat and laugh and drink and watch fireworks. it was great.

the hit of the night was the sangria - what a perfectly refreshing drink for a hot night outdoors for a BBQ, fireworks and general nostalgia about our home country!

i originally got this recipe from my awesome friend allen brown.

1 bottle chilled White Wine
1 White Peach
1 Green Apple
2 Oranges
~ 6 oz. Gingerale
~ 1/3 c. Sugar
~ 1 T. Ground Cinnamon

First put wine in pitcher - add sugar and cinnamon and stir until well mixed. Dice peach & apple (1/2 in. cubes).  Slice 1 Orange.  Squeeze Juice from other orange.  Mix, chill, & serve.  Can serve over ice or not.  Extra fruit can be used as garnish.

Picture 165: Flank Steak

Dinner tonight was brought to you by the crock pot (shocker!)

flank steak stuffed with apple, feta and almonds.

i give it a giant YUM!!!!!!!!!!!! seriously. so good. so so freaking good. and really easy. the taste is subtle but delicious and refreshing. it was the perfect supper for a hot summer day.

3lbs flank steak
1/2 c honey
1/2 c gluten-free soy sauce
3/4 c feta cheese, crumbled
2 garlic cloves, chopped
1 green apple diced (no need to peel)
1/3 cup raw almonds, chopped

Put the flank steak in a plastic ziplock bag with the honey and soy sauce and marinate overnight.

In the morning, combine the feta cheese, garlic, green apple and chopped almonds in a mixing bowl. Pour the flank steak and marinade into the crock pot. Remove the meat from the marinade, and put it on a cutting board. Put a handful or two of the cheese filling in the middle of the flank and roll it up (the more you can stuff in there the better!!) Return the meat to the crock, steam-side down. (If you need to, you can use toothpicks or skewers to secure it). Cover and cook on low for 6 to 7 hours, or on high for about 4 hours.

Slice and serve! The extra feta, apple, garlic and almonds make for a great salad topping!

Picture 135: tri-tip

i made this for dinner...in my crock pot. yummm.

tri-tip with sun dried tomatoes and feta.

throw a 2lb piece of tri-tip on your crock pot
put an 8 oz (drained) jar of sun dried tomatoes on top
crumble 8 oz feta on top of that
pour 1/3 cup dry white wine over all of it

let it cook on low for 6-10 hours (i did six)

SO EASY! the meat was SUPER tender. and it was quite tasty. i thought the meat could have used a bit more flavor...but it turned out to be really good leftovers. i had sandwiches for lunch.

Picture 76: Corned Beef and Cabbage

 It is St. Patrick's Day...and in honor of the day, I shall play my bagpipes and eat corned beef and cabbage. [Full disclosure: I made this corned beef and cabbage yesterday becuase of scheduling conflicts with the lovely people I was sharing the meal with...but I DID eat leftovers today....so it counts!]

Corned Beef & Cabbage – From Marmie (my mom knows what's best!)

First of all, I am super cute and when I wear my grandma's apron I channel her exceptional cooking skills!

List of Ingredients
1 flat cut corned beef (4 lbs)
4 cut up potatoes
4 carrots (cut)
3 cut up onions (brown)
Head of Cabbage

Put all vegetables (except cabbage) into Dutch oven

add water to almost cover vegetables.
Lay corned beef over vegetables with FAT side up.
Sprinkle beef with pickling spices.

COVER and simmer for more than an hour per pound.
(if water gets to high take some out – don’t want meat immersed in water)

When done:
Scrape off pickling spices
Cut raw head of cabbage in chunks – put on top of meat
Cover with lid and simmer for another hour to hour and 15 min.
Then meal is ready

Lift out cabbage (in bowl)

Lift out meat (scrape off fat) put in bowl (I think I cut the meat weird this time around....but it still tasted the same!)

Veggies in bowl

Special Note: Best served with BEER!

Picture 1: food

So, I like it when people do the 365 days of pictures challenge (or whatever you call it). So, I thought I would do that. Only because, it would help me to blog more. I will take at least one picture a day (with my smartphone, just to be a bit most specific so no one gets really high expectations) and that'll give me something to write about. Here's to hoping not TOO many days will be "welp, here's my desk chair again" or "this is how many cups of coffee I drank TODAY." Let the creativity flow.

To kick us off I am going to talk about FOOD (shocker!). I had my lovely ladies over for a relaxing "Modern Family" marathon today. And I cooked up some chicken wings (delicious!) and then made....................

Chocolate-Pecan Pie Bars from my Kraft Foods magazine





















1 cup butter or margarine, softened
2 cups flour
2 cups sugar (divided)
1/4 tsp. salt
1 1/2 cups light corn syrup
8 squares Baker's semi-sweet chocolate (divided)
4 eggs (beaten)
1 1/2 tsp vanilla
2 1/2 cups chopped pecans

Beat butter, flour, 1/2 cup sugar and salt with mixer until mixture resembles coarse crumbs. Press onto bottom of 15 x 10 x 1 pan sprayed with cooking spray. Bake 20 min. (at 350) or until lightly browned.
Meanwhile, microwave corn syrup and 6 chocolate squares in large microwavable bowl on HIGH 2.5 minutes or until chocolate is almost melted, stirring after 1.5 minutes; stir until completely melted. Add remaining sugar, eggs and vanilla; mix well. Stir in nuts. Pour over warm crust; spread to evenly cover crust.
Bake 35 minutes (at 350) or until filling is firm around edges but still slightly soft in center. Cool completely. Melt remaining chocolate squares as directed on package; drizzle over cooled bars. Let stand until chocolate is firm.

I wasn't extremely happy about how they turned out - I think it is because I did not have the proper size pan so I just ended up using a 9x13. But everyone that came over LOVED them and said they were delicious. And USUALLY they don't lie to me :)

Happy 2011. I hope you enjoy my pictures and where this crazy journey of life takes me these next 365 days. And if you don't....just stop reading my blog!

No longer eating alone

Good news! My roommate and his fiancee ate dinner with me on Tuesday night. I am not going to admit that the last few meals and treats I have cooked have all been just for me (don't worry....I didn't eat them all in one sitting), but let's just say that I enjoy making other people like me by cooking for them.

Secretly, I don't think they were planning on having dinner with me until Ipp woke up that morning and smelled the DELICIOUSNESS coming out of the crockpot that was already stewing with succulent chicken.

Cream Cheese Chicken - by Stephanie O'Dea

6 boneless, skinless chicken breast halves (or large thighs)
2 Tbsp italian seasoning
1/2 tsp celery seed
1 Tbsp onion powder
1/4 tsp black pepper
1 tsp kosher salt
2 garlic cloves
1 tablespoon sugar
1 10-oz can condensed cream of mushroom soup
1 8-oz block of cream cheese

Put the chicken into the cooker. Combine the seasonings and sugar in a small dish and pour on top. Add the mushroom soup. Cook on low for 6 to 8 hours, or until the chicken is cooked through. Shred with two large forks, and mix in the cream cheese. Switch the cooker to high, and cook for another 30 minutes, or until the cream cheese has fully melted. Serve over pasta.

I took a before picture, but was so excited to eat, I forgot to take an after picture so you'll have to use your really great imagination.











I served it with a green salad, asparagus with basalmic vinegar and goat cheese, and dinner rolls.











This was delicious. My roommate said he liked it even better than beef stroganoff which is just blasphemous, but quite a compliment.

Sweet Treats

And now my sweet tooth has taken over.

First I made Lizzo's famous pumpkin cookies. Seriously, so good. I am not even going to be humble. These were AMAZING cookies. Even ask my staff...cause I shared.











Then I decided to make another drink in my crockpot. This time..........

PEPPERMINT HOT COCOA

3 cups nonfat dry milk [wanna know a secret? i didn't see the DRY part on this sentence when i first read it....so my batch was SUPER rich...you MIGHT want to make the same mistake]
1 cup confectioner's sugar [known as powdered to the common human]
3/4 cup unsweetened cocoa powder
1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 cup milk chocolate syrup
1 to 2 teaspoons peppermint extract
7 cups water

Combine the dry ingredients in the stoneware and stir with a spoon. Squeeze in the chocolate syrup, and add the peppermint extract. Add water a cup at a time (this is also were I started adding milk, one cup at a time) - and stir well. The chocolate mixture will be bubbly and look powdery. It's okay - Stephanie promises it will cook together. Cover and cook on high for 2 to 3 hours, or until completely hot. Serve with marshmallows and candy canes (if you want to be super cute).

I promise that soon (but not quite yet) I will talk about something other than food.

Asparagus

I love asparagus. like, a lot. i have no idea why. but i could eat that vegetable at every meal.














so, i thought to myself, self....you might enjoy a good "cream of asparagus soup"! so here is another crockpot recipe from stephanie o'dea.

1 1/5 pounds asparagus
1/2 white onions, chopped
1 medium white potato, chopped
4 cups vegetable broth
1/2 tsp seasoned salt
1/2 tsp black pepper
1/2 cup half and half (this is optional, but let's be honest...why would you not use it??)
kosher salt

Wash and trim the woody ends of the asparagus, and cut the rest into 2-inch lengths. Add them to the crock pot, along with onion and potato; no need to peel. Pour in the broth and add the seasoned salt and black pepper. Cover and cook on low for 7 to 9 hours, or on high for 3 to 5 hours. The soup is ready when the potatoes are tender. Carefully use a handheld immersion blender to soupify (but, really, WHO has one of these) so, go all MacGyver in your kitchen by blending the soup in batches in your traditional blender. When you are done return the soup to the crock, stir in the half and half and make sure it is heated through again. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

BEFORE











AFTER











This soup is very asparagusy (what??? i know, shocker). but it does lack any real flavor other than that. kind of bland. i enjoyed it, and i am glad i made it once just to try it, but i don't think it's a recipe i'll be adding to my book of delicious treats and tricks.

PUMPKIN!

What I love most about fall are
...the decoration
....the smells
.....the meals!

fall is one of my favorite times to cook.

but on this lazy, chilly, cloudy saturday afternoon what I decided to try for the first time was a pumpkin spice latte in my CROCK POT!! glorious. if you have never heard of stephanie o'dea you NEED to know her. especially if you love your crock pot as much as i do. look her up here.

this is her amazing recipe and it is delcious.

3/4 cup strong coffee
2 cups milk (i used skim)
2 tbsp canned pureed pumpkin
1/2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
2 tbsp sugar
2 tbsp vanilla extract

Add coffee and milk to your crockpot. Whist in pumpkin, spices, sugar and vanilla. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours. Whisk again .Ladle into mugs, and garnish with whipped cream and additional cinnamon. You can add a cinnamon stick to be FANCY! The recipe serves two so be sure to double or triple it if you are having people over or like to drink your body weight, like me :)











see....don't i look HAPPY!

Another little foodie post

A friend of mine, Tammi, has passed on some of her wonderful food magazines to me. Tonight I decided to try the "Beef Sirloin Tips with Smoky Pepper Sauce" from Better Homes and Gardens October 2010 edition.

Here is the dish

















1.5 lbs. beef sirloin tip steak
1/2 tsp. smoked paprika or paprika (I thought I had this at home, but turns out I didn't [oops!!] so I used cayenne pepper)
1 Tbsp. vegetable oil
1 12-16 oz. jar roasted red and/or yellow sweet peppers
1/2 cup hickory or mesquite flavored BBQ sauce
1/4 cup chopped fresh italian flat-leaf) parsley

1. Trim meat and cut into 1-1.5 inch chunks; sprinkle with paprika. In 12-inch skillet, heat oil over medium-high heat. Add meat; brown 5 minutes or to desired doneness. Remove from skillet; keep warm.

2. Meanwhile, drain roasted red peppers, reserving liquid. Cut up roasted peppers. Measure 1.5 cup of the reserved liquid (if needed, add enough water to equal 1/2 cup). Add peppers and liquid to skillet. Add barbecue sauce. Cook uncovered, 5-10 minutes, stirring frequently until sauce is slightly thickened. Return meat to skillet; heat through.

3. Sprinkle with parsley. Makes 4 servings. Each Serving 367 calories, 18 g of fat, 111 mg chol, 510 mg sodium, 13 g carbo, 2 g fiber, 36 g pro.

















Shhhh, don't tell, but I added some asparagus. I think it added some nice flavor, color, and a delicate crunch.

I complimented the meal with a little Pinot Noir and some mixed greens with grapes (topped with creamy balsamic vinaigrette.)

YUM!!!!!! You should give it a try. I give it 3.7 out of 5 stars [I have NO idea what that is based on]. It was super easy and really tasty!

Happy eating.

Wild rice beer cheese soup

I made my famous (it is really not MY recipe, so I don't know why I say my...other than I forget where it comes from and all my friends associate it with me....I digress) wild rice beer cheese soup for my birthday Midwest crockpot party (I know, you're jealous, my friends an I know how to party!).

I was inspired by the beautiful and talented Unexperts to do a post on the food I made. So here it goes.

WILD RICE BEER CHEESE SOUP.

Here is what you need:
2 cans chicken broth
1 c. chopped carrots
1/2 c. chopped broccoli
3/4 c. chopped celery
1 1/2 c. cooked chicken or turkey
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 large onion chopped
8 oz. sliced mushrooms
2 cans cream of potato soup
water
beer (12-18 oz)
8 oz. velveeta cheese cubed
3/4 c. uncooked wild rice
1 tsp worcestershire sauce
salt
pepper
1 1/2 tsp. basil

First, I had to put on one of my grandma's old apron's in order to channel her exceptional cooking skills. I don't think she ever cooked this soup, but if she had, I am sure it would have blown us all away.











* Put chicken broth, carrots, broccoli, celery and chicken (or turkey) in a crockpot at high heat setting


































*Saute in a large frying pan extra virgin olive oil and onion. Add mushroom once onion is translucent.























* Add to frying pan potato soup, 1 can water, beer (you can choose a better beer, don't worry, this is just what I had at home :))











*Once frying pan mixture is hot, add: velveeta cheese

*Add frying pan mixture to crockpot once cheese is completely melted. Turn heat setting to low.

*Add to crockpot wild rice, worcestershire sauce, salt and pepper (to taste) and basil.
























*cook on low heat setting for at least 2 hours.

And then.....dive in!!!











If your life does not change when you eat this soup....then you did something wrong :)